Published: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 at 8:40 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 at 8:40 p.m.

Clemson coach Brad Brownell is an admitted basketball junkie and not a guy who has an easy time leaving his work at the office.

That translates into what should be an extremely long and exasperating offseason as he contemplates what's next for a program that lost 10 of its last 11 games, including its final seven.

A youthful roster is an easy excuse (and one that Brownell didn't beat into the ground during Wednesday's wrap-up meeting with the media), but it was obvious the third-year Tigers coach was more concerned with things like team chemistry and a will to win.

All this was foreign to Brownell, who had never suffered a losing season in 10 years as a head coach and has made at least one NCAA tournament trip at all three stops. He's never had to endure a losing skid like the one that culminated this season. He remembered once starting a season 0-6 at Wright State before the squad rebounded to win 20 games.

He has said on multiple occasions he hasn't been ashamed with how hard the Tigers competed, but there's no doubt there was a huge absence of backbone down the stretch where the team made a habit of losing tight ones late.

Fundamentals such as missed free throws and only taking five charges the entire season were the kind of intangibles that cause teams to lose games.

The most glaring issue, however, was a question that has plagued Clemson for many years, even during the previous Oliver Purnell tenure: When is Clemson finally going to land a tried and true scorer who can create his own shots, a guy who can get to the bucket while also adept shooting from the perimeter? A player who, with the game on the line and everybody in the gym knowing the ball will be in his hands, still gets himself a solid look and wants to take it?

Brownell did what he had to do with his current roster, which was attempt to drag every contest down into the mud, and the Tigers were successful at forcing their pace and bringing opponents down to their level. It just didn't transfer into victories because Clemson couldn't score.

The Tigers held opponents to 60.1 points per game, the program's lowest total since 1950, but their 61.5 scoring average was also the lowest in 42 years. That style of play also won't bring in the casual fans as there were some empty seats at Littlejohn even when No. 3 Miami or hated North Carolina paid a visit. Clemson almost stunned the Hurricanes in a 45-43 loss, but while the close call was fun to watch, fans didn't exactly exit the building breathless after a total of 88 combined points.

Of course it's all about winning no matter the style, and it's not going to get any easier for Clemson. The Tigers finished 11th out of 12 teams in a down season for a conference that's getting ready to welcome basketball standouts Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Louisville into the fold.

Yes, the Tigers only had two on their roster older than sophomore, but there were a handful of ACC teams that also boasted extremely youthful lineups. Clemson has a pair of wildcards in 6-foot-7 freshman Jaron Blossomgame and 6-foot-2 Philly guard Devin Coleman coming back after both missed the season with leg injuries, but nobody knows just how much they'll bring to the table.

On the bright side, dynamic rising junior K.J. McDaniels looks to have the tools to blossom into a big-time scorer while perimeter ace freshman Jordan Roper showed glimpses of being a go-to guy toward the back end of his first year.

"You're asking questions of yourself all the time as to what we need to do to figure out a way to coach these guys better," Brownell said just prior to the ACC tournament. "When you're not winning you are questioning everything you're doing. Are you practicing the right way? Do you need to change your preparation? Do we need to be playing faster or playing slower? We just haven't been able to figure it out with this group."

The coach who has had success everywhere he's been for a decade now has an entire offseason to keep asking those same things over and over, and it's doubtful the answers will come any easier.

<p>Clemson coach Brad Brownell is an admitted basketball junkie and not a guy who has an easy time leaving his work at the office.</p><p>That translates into what should be an extremely long and exasperating offseason as he contemplates what's next for a program that lost 10 of its last 11 games, including its final seven.</p><p>A youthful roster is an easy excuse (and one that Brownell didn't beat into the ground during Wednesday's wrap-up meeting with the media), but it was obvious the third-year Tigers coach was more concerned with things like team chemistry and a will to win.</p><p>All this was foreign to Brownell, who had never suffered a losing season in 10 years as a head coach and has made at least one NCAA tournament trip at all three stops. He's never had to endure a losing skid like the one that culminated this season. He remembered once starting a season 0-6 at Wright State before the squad rebounded to win 20 games.</p><p>He has said on multiple occasions he hasn't been ashamed with how hard the Tigers competed, but there's no doubt there was a huge absence of backbone down the stretch where the team made a habit of losing tight ones late.</p><p>Fundamentals such as missed free throws and only taking five charges the entire season were the kind of intangibles that cause teams to lose games. </p><p>The most glaring issue, however, was a question that has plagued Clemson for many years, even during the previous Oliver Purnell tenure: When is Clemson finally going to land a tried and true scorer who can create his own shots, a guy who can get to the bucket while also adept shooting from the perimeter? A player who, with the game on the line and everybody in the gym knowing the ball will be in his hands, still gets himself a solid look and wants to take it?</p><p>Brownell did what he had to do with his current roster, which was attempt to drag every contest down into the mud, and the Tigers were successful at forcing their pace and bringing opponents down to their level. It just didn't transfer into victories because Clemson couldn't score.</p><p>The Tigers held opponents to 60.1 points per game, the program's lowest total since 1950, but their 61.5 scoring average was also the lowest in 42 years. That style of play also won't bring in the casual fans as there were some empty seats at Littlejohn even when No. 3 Miami or hated North Carolina paid a visit. Clemson almost stunned the Hurricanes in a 45-43 loss, but while the close call was fun to watch, fans didn't exactly exit the building breathless after a total of 88 combined points.</p><p>Of course it's all about winning no matter the style, and it's not going to get any easier for Clemson. The Tigers finished 11th out of 12 teams in a down season for a conference that's getting ready to welcome basketball standouts Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Louisville into the fold.</p><p>Yes, the Tigers only had two on their roster older than sophomore, but there were a handful of ACC teams that also boasted extremely youthful lineups. Clemson has a pair of wildcards in 6-foot-7 freshman Jaron Blossomgame and 6-foot-2 Philly guard Devin Coleman coming back after both missed the season with leg injuries, but nobody knows just how much they'll bring to the table.</p><p>On the bright side, dynamic rising junior K.J. McDaniels looks to have the tools to blossom into a big-time scorer while perimeter ace freshman Jordan Roper showed glimpses of being a go-to guy toward the back end of his first year.</p><p>"You're asking questions of yourself all the time as to what we need to do to figure out a way to coach these guys better," Brownell said just prior to the ACC tournament. "When you're not winning you are questioning everything you're doing. Are you practicing the right way? Do you need to change your preparation? Do we need to be playing faster or playing slower? We just haven't been able to figure it out with this group."</p><p>The coach who has had success everywhere he's been for a decade now has an entire offseason to keep asking those same things over and over, and it's doubtful the answers will come any easier.</p>